Thanks to all my reviewers, you keep me going and make me update faster-truly, you guys are my motovation. Hope you enjoy the new chapter and don't worry 'kus there's much more ta go.
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Rogue's head made a dull thunk as it fell against the solid interior wall of the Blackbird. It was just all too much for her to handle, there was a point in a girl's life when she just couldn't take any more negatives and Rogue had already exceeded that point ten times over. Today had just pushed her even further over that edge, she rubbed her temples with her fingers in order to sooth the pain that had been building up in her mind, it wasn't working.
After the awkward silence following Derrick's words, they had decided to split up into two different groups. Team A, compromising of Captain America, Vision, Pietro, Carol, Derrick, Ororo, Jean, Kitty, Kurt, and Remy went off to try to stop the creature that seemed to be following a certain trail that was still unknown to them in the Avenger's jet. While team B, which held Logan, Scott, Bobby, Wanda, Beast, and her were track backing to the gothic style shop that the beast had leapt out of. Rogue was sure it hadn't been a coincidence and they could discover something useful at the place.
Sinking her head down onto her knees, Rogue was barely aware of the person who came and sat next to her. It was only when he spoke up did Rogue lift her head slightly to listen. "Don't worry about it kid, that guy was crazy."
"That would be a lot more reassurin' ta meh if Ah knew it ta be true." Rogue sighed as she lifted her head back up and again tilted it against the wall. "You saw the look in that guy's eyes when he saw meh, he was petrified."
Logan frowned, thinking back to that incident and Derrick's face the old man looked as if he might have had a heart attack. "Come on kid, you're not gunna be possessed by the Lucifer, or that Fallen Thingamajig…whatever, the devil's not gunna possess ya. Ya shouldn't worry about that rubbish he said. He's just a crazy old preacher whose age caught up with his mind."
Rogue shook her head in dismay. "It's not just that. I keep runnin' over and over through mah mind and-I just can't figure it out Logan. How'd Ah heal? What was the venom supposed ta do anyway? The thing wouldn't have bit meh if it just ending up curing meh. An-And why do Ah still have these eyes? Ah can't figure it out."
Logan shrugged. "The healing could have been leftover from me, like the Vision deducted; your body just could have felt too close and triggered it off."
"Ah just get this…this feelin' that that's not it."
Logan bit his lower lip in exasperation. Trying to cheer her up he went a different rout. "Well maybe we'll get some answers from this shop the thing jumped outa of. It's just gunna be like a regular old mission, when all this is done you'll be jokin' about it."
Rogue highly doubted that and Logan knew she did as well as he knew he did, but it was an attempt. Rogue's mouth twisted into an 'it's alright' half smile. "Ah guess whatever ya know. Ah just wish this mission was done with already."
Logan nudged her. "It will be, don't worry. That thing might have been a match for you and Remy, but it'll be nothin' against half the X-Men and the Avengers. These do-gooders never lose ey?"
Rogue graced him with a small smile. "Ah suppose your right, an' when this is all done Ah'll have Remy ta entertain meh fohr awhile now that he's back."
Logan grunted. "Now that's somethin' I don't wanna hear about, I'm done here." Rogue's smile grew as Logan lifted himself from the floor beside her and walked back up to the pilot's room. Rogue felt marginally better from Logan's words, he could always help her cheer up a bit. Standing herself, she strapped down lightly into one of the seats and leaned it back for a little rest. Before her eyes were even fully shut she was in a vast sleep that was not entirely natural, and in that sleep she was drowned away by dreams.
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A hand was gently placed on her shoulder, she turned to see The Scarlet Witch, Wanda, calming her and seeing if she was ok…
Flash
In Greece on one of the many islands, this one more known than others, Santorini was feeling like a hot desert. On the Red Beach at the South end of the island the X-Men and Avengers gathered around a cave in the rock cliff overshadowing the beach. They had climbed the rocky ledges downward and wove their way through to finally reach this end and knew what lie inside. The poor couple who lived here must have been taken prisoners along with the others, trapped…
Flash
It was the most awful thing she had ever seen. Blood dripped from its white polished marble steps. A circle enclosed the two dark eyes. The eyes that were now her own.
Flash
Following her partners into the hidden basement her breath caught in her throat at what she saw. Bodies were hung around the basement from ropes that were attached to the ceiling. A demonic ceremonial alter stood at the far end of the basement, the bodies all lined in rows up to the alter. It was all black and red; the red was sticky and wet. Blood. Young boys and girls all the way up the line to old grandparents, their eyes stared on forever lifelessly. They seemed to all be looking directly at the approaching group. Her eyes watered at the sight of the massacre. When they were halfway to the alter the others materialized out of the darkness like shadows that had been waiting. Waiting for them to be halfway through, waiting to trap them in the center…
Flash
His hand reached out-attempting to grasp her own, so close, so close the fingers brushed and then…
Flash
Surrounded and unable to move, unable to call out, unable to warn her friends. She was trapped and she knew what was coming, she feared it. She didn't want such evil to even touch her, but he would not only feel her, he would invade her. Become her. She would be washed away, lost to the world in his mind. She could feel him in the air around them, suddenly the people around her, the sacrifices cried out in anguish and she knew it was happening, there was nothing she could do to stop it…
Flash
She couldn't control him, she couldn't stop him. She was useless, his body tool that he used as he pleased, and there was absolutely nothing she could do. Nothing, nothing, nothing…
Flash
Glowing black eyes, satanic, demonic, unfriendly glared out from the light and seemed to dampen everything around them. The sun itself seemed to dim in the darkness of the eyes, as if they had covered it and were swallowing the world whole…
Flash
The X-Men were gathered on the streets, ruble lay everywhere from the destruction of the creature. They fought it fiercely, but their attacks seemed to be having little to no progress. Things were not going well. The beast swatted Carol out of the air again and through several more buildings, now it was just getting annoyed at this distraction. Looking to his left where explosions were rocking him, the creature picked up a chunk of the building it was next to, everyone else was occupied. He couldn't stop it from coming; he had no time to get out of the way. The cement block came rushing with no way of stopping; it crushed him whole and he was lost to the world.
"REMY! NO! YOU CAN'T LEA-" Rogue's breath caught in her throat as a sob was forced out, tears streamed down the side of her face, but she paid them no heed. Rogue stood straight up so fast that the seatbelt around her broke and fell limply to the sides of her seat. She gasped for breath as if she had just run a marathon and it took her a moment to recognize where she was. The Blackbird loomed around her like an enclosing monster; Rogue put a hand to her chest as the air from her lungs was forced out with each labored breath.
A hand was gently placed on her shoulder, she turned to see The Scarlet Witch, Wanda, calming her and seeing if she was ok. Rogue's memory flashed back to her nightmares and she took a step back from Wanda in renowned fear.
"That happened! Exactly that! It all happened, just the way you just did right now, Ah saw it!"
Scott remained steering the jet but by this time Logan, Bobby, and Hank had all crowded around behind Wanda who was doing her best to discover what had scared Rogue so badly. "Rogue, what's wrong? What happened? What did you see?"
Rogue's wild eyes located Wanda's and shakily she pointed to her hand. "Ah-Ah just saw it happen in mah dream, flashes of different times, but Ah saw you touch mah shoulder and try ta comfort meh when Ah dreamed it."
"Do you mean like de ja vui?"
Rogue shook her head harshly, "No, no it wasn't de ja vui. They were like-flashes, visions, premonitions maybe. Ah-Ah-"
Wanda tried to piece this together. "What did you see in these flashes? What scared you this badly?"
"Ah," Rogue swallowed thickly and closed her eyes in pain of the memory. "Ah saw Remy die."
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"Is dat de best y' got homme?" Remy gave his trademark smirk at the frustrated speedster and grabbed his cards to deal again. From his left Vision stared at him with a blank impassionate face. "What's up wit' y'?" He asked the stone faced android.
In just as impassionate tone that matched perfectly with his face, Vision replied. "Mr. LeBeau, there is a 98.759 percent chance that you are cheating. To win the last forty rounds in a row is enough in itself, but in having Royal cards every time has remarkably increased the odds. I do doubt it myself that you could accomplish such a feat with only 1.351 percent chance of continuing on this record."
Pietro's face got red as he realized he had been cheated upon. "Hey I want my money back you low grade thief!"
Remy chuckled colorfully. "Remy may be a sexy t'ief, but he didn' cheat at de card game. He just be lucky."
Pietro's eyes narrowed. "Lucky my ass, you dirty Cajun! You're a damn liar!"
Remy was still enjoying himself, he winked at the infuriated speedy. "An' what is de speedy stick gunna do 'bout it?"
Before anyone could blink Pietro super sped himself to the Cajun and tackled him, forcibly knocking him to the ground, then he reached inside the cocky thief's coat and pulled out a wad of bills the Cajun had taken from him. In less than a second he was seated at the other side of the plane, counting his money, and grumbling under his breath.
"Hey!" Remy picked up a few of the cards that had scattered over the floor when he was tackled and charged them. Aiming them down the center isle he flung them at Pietro who had no room to move to the side and only ducked down at the last moment before they exploded above his head. Remy picked up two more cards as he slid his way to the back of the plane, but was stopped from charging them only a couple of feet away from Pietro by an iron clasped grip on his shoulders.
Remy turned his head to the side to see Carol holding him back and pulling him away from the speed demon. "Don't be such guys all the time; you could end up exploding the plane."
"But p'tite, dat boy gots Remy's winnin's." Remy tried to squiggle out of her grip, but he knew it was useless. He was all too familiar with Rogue's iron clasp grip when she pulled him away.
"Winnings that you cheated to get."
Remy grinned. "But still won dem." Carol pushed the grinning thief into a seat and walked back to the front of the plane without another word to him. Dat fille is determined not t' like Remy, she really hates Rogue heh? Remy almost afraid she wouldn't save de girl's life back dere. We'll have t' work on dat hatred t' my bella woman when dis is all done.
Remy turned to his right just in time to see Ororo sit down in the seat next to him. "Hey Stormy, lon' time no see."
Ororo shook her head. "How many times have I told you about callin' me Stormy?"
Remy wore an innocent look. "Not enough apparently."
Storm's smile threw off her crossed eyebrows. "Apparently. How was it down at The Big Easy? You must have gotten back just in time for the Professor to start you on this next mission."
"What can Remy say? He be a master o' timin'."
"When all this is done, maybe you and Rogue should take a vacation for awhile. She missed you while you were away." Remy knew Storm only looked out for the best things for him; it was one of the things he liked most about the woman.
"It's har' not t' miss da sexiest t'ief in de world. Dink how much trouble dat'd be." Storm laughed, Remy was so confident and cocky at times. "But dat would be nice, all good ideas Stormy. Have t' ask de Professor when dis is done wit'."
"You should, it would mean a lot to Rogue to-" Storm was interrupted by Jean's voice as the woman leaned over the two.
"Remy watch yourself in the battle today, Rogue's worried about you." Jean didn't want to tell Remy about what she saw in the horrified girl's mind. She would be extra careful to keep an eye out for him, although it could have just been coincidental the way Wanda had touched her shoulder the same way, it crept Jean out. After being given permission, she had struggingly entered her teammate's mind. All the images there had been terrifying, she couldn't find the source from which they were coming either, although she could guess at that.
What caused her the most unease was the feeling she got when she entered her teammate's mind. It was like a slimy black hand that gripped her hand, trying to remove her from Rogue's mind. It wasn't one of the other personalities in Rogue's head; Jean had too much experience with them to know that they weren't the cause. This was almost like…violation, the feeling of trespassing or going somewhere she knew she wasn't supposed to. It was almost as if she was being shunned out of Rogue's mind, as if her presence there wasn't welcome. As if…As if someone else was watching not only her, but Rogue too and had an agenda of their own.
Jean was called back to earth by the sound of Remy's chuckle as he spoke up. "Not even fighting yet and my cherie's concerned fohr me. Dat's jus' like her, she really knows how t' warm a Cajun's heart."
Jean hoped concern was really only the problem they would face today, but further down she knew she was wrong, she knew that she was very, very wrong.